The unwillingness to serve on a foreign expedition was common in England then: men began to weary of the hardships of fighting: they knew too intimately the horrors of a sea-battle. Essex, too, found the men at Plymouth ready to mutiny and desert. He immediately took stringent measures: soldiers were tried by martial law, and two were executed forthwith "on a very fair pleasant green called the Ho." On June 1 the fleet at length put out to sea, and came to anchor on June 20 in the bay of St. Sebastians, which is half a league distant from Cadiz. The voyage had been taken without any mishap, except that the unwisdom of a divided command soon became apparent. From Dover Lord Howard of Effingham wrote to Robert Cecil: "My commission in being joined to the Earl is an idle thing; I am used but as a drag." But the weather was favourable, and several prizes were taken. From St. Sebastians Ralegh had instructions to sail with the ships under his charge and the Dutch squadron to the Main, and to lie just outside the harbour; he was bidden to take special care that the ships riding near Cadiz did not escape, but not to fight, except in self-defence, without further direction. "When I was arrived back again (which was two hours after the rest) I found the Earl of Essex disembarking his soldiers; and he had put many companies into boats, purposing to make his descent on the west side of Cales; but such was the greatness of the billow, by reason of a forcible southerly wind, as the boats were ready to sink at the stern of the Earl; and indeed divers did so, and in them some of the armed men; but because it was formerly resolved (and that to cast doubts would have been esteemed an effect of fear) the Earl purposed to go on until such time as I came aboard him, and in the presence of all the collonels protested against the resolution; giving him reasons and making apparent demonstrations that he thereby ran the way of our general ruin, to the utter overthrow of the whole armies, their own lives, and her Majesty's future safety. The Earl excused himself, and laid it before the Lord Admiral, who (he said) 'would not consent to enter with the fleet till the town were first possessed.' All the commanders and gentlemen present besought me to dissuade the attempt, for they all perceived the danger, and were resolved that the most part could not but perish in the sea, ere they came to set foot on ground, and if any arrived on shoar, yet were they sure to have their boats cast on their heads; and that twenty men in so desperate a descent would have defeated them all. The Earl hereupon prayed me to perswade my Lord Admiral, who, finding a certain destruction by the former resolution, was content to enter the port. "When I brought news of this agreement to the Earl, calling out of my boat Entramus, he cast his hat into the sea for joy and prepared to weigh anchor."